Earthling Project part 5: Black Tower
by Lucy McGonagle
Summary: Climax. Please read, review and please for give this lazy manic for not updating...small bits of ja fluff. Part 2 added now!
1. Chapter 1

Summary…beginning of the climax for this old Earthling Project…you'll see.

Don't own C.L. Do own Gilis.

Look, I'm very sorry for how long this took to write…and it isn't even all that long. Like the summary says, it's only the beginning part of the climax, containing a little bit of fluff for you-know-who, some of Odd being stupid, and then some…evil…bowhahaha! Okay, I'll shut up now.

2 days later (Aelita)

Earth is a strange place.

No, seriously. It is.

It's now the third time I've been here. I still don't know what to make of it. Sights and smells and sounds…it all packs up inside my mind until I'm worried my head just might explode.

For instance, there's the 'powder room' in the girl's bathroom area. That's what Yumi calls it, anyway. There is always this group of girls –that horrid Sissy among them- that stand there and spray this immense amount of fragrance on themselves. It makes me cough and sputter sometimes, which makes my eyes water. That's how overwhelming it is.

I do my best to stay out of there, obviously.

Then there's the lunchroom. It's not technically the smells in there, although there are many, and very varied, but the sounds. Lunchtime at Kadic Academy is, for lack of a better term, pandemonium. Food fights, fistfights, and at least a hundred students all packed into one room. Thankfully, at least our table is normally a quiet one. Yumi is always doing homework, Ulrich and Odd are usually playing table hockey, and Jeremie and I are just…talking. It's amazing how different our two lives are. Students, and…warriors, I guess. I don't know what else to call us, really.

"Oy!"

My head shot up, surprised by the sudden yell. Not that yelling was uncommon in the lunchroom, of course. The next second, a paper ball went whizzing inches past my left ear.

"Sorry, Aelita!" Odd called, running to get the ball. I rolled my eyes, and looked at Jeremie, who was typing away on his laptop.

Curious, I leaned over his shoulder to see the screen. "What are you doing?"

"Perfecting a surprise," Jeremie told me, closing a small window, and grinning evilly. I looked up at him pleadingly.

"Do let me have a look, Jeremie," I wheedled, but he just shook his head, grinning.

"Not till your birthday, Princess," he told me, and kissed my forehead. I smiled, then frowned, confused.

"My birthday?"

Jeremie nodded, closing the laptop. "Yeah. It's one week from the anniversary of your first trip to earth. I've decided that to by the day of your birthday. You don't mind, do you, Aelita?" His grin turned slightly sheepish. "I'm sorry I forgot to mention. It was right before…" he blushed slightly, and took my hand. "You know, the dance." I felt warmth go up my cheeks, and smiled.

"You mean, the best night of my life," I half-whispered, running my hand over his cheek, and Jeremie's blush deepened slightly. Then, to my surprise, he leaned down and brushed my lips with his gently.

Pulling back, he kissed the tip of my nose, and whispered, "Mine too, Princess." I blushed again, and Jeremie smiled.

Somebody whistled, and our little world evaporated. I looked around, to see Yumi in the middle of trying to strangle Odd, and Ulrich still whistling. Jeremie and I looked each other, grinning and blushing.

"Excuse me, love-birds, but some people are, like, trying to eat!"

Sissy hadcome over to our table, a disgusted look on her face. An evil idea came into my mind, and I looked up at the girl, glaring.

"Yes, and some of us are trying to breathe, Sissy, so if you please, go away before we all choke on that cheap perfume of yours!"

The others gaped at me in surprise (as did half of the other tables). A few seconds later, Sissy closed her dropped jaw, and glared back at me, obviously trying to think of something to say.

"You…you…hm!" With that, the girl flipped her hair and stomped off to a table at the far end of the room.

"Nice one, Aelita," Yumi commented, plopping down on the other side of me with her lunch tray. I just grinned, and leaned against Jeremie.

"You need to give Einstein some pointers on comebacks," Odd told me, grinning evilly. Jeremie made a face at his friend.

"It's not like you're always the smooth speaker, Odd", he told him. "And if you're talking about the bus incident the other day, I-"

"Don't worry, Jeremie," Ulrich interjected loudly, and Yumi giggled. "You've never heard him try to talk to a girl he actually has a crush on."

Odd winked and rested his hands behind his head. "Oh, but ya know, the ladies love me anyway." Yumi and I exchanged exasperated glances, and burst out laughing.

"Okay, okay, so maybe not you two," Odd said loudly, glaring half-heartedly at us as we recovered slightly. "But you guys know me too well." Odd grinned suddenly, and looked at me. "Plus, Princess, I know better, 'cause Jeremie would kill me if I ever even tried to flirt with you," he winked, and Jeremie blushed even as he pulled me a little closer. "And Ms. Yumi, I've seen her kick too much butt in Lyoko to not see her as one of the guys." Yumi glared at Odd, and punched him lightly on the shoulder. "And Ulrich, good buddy, you'd probably attack me anyway," Odd added after a few seconds, and it was Jeremie and I who burst into laugher this time as Ulrich and Yumi blushed, staring at their feet.

"Why did I know he'd do that?" Jeremie muttered in my ear, still sniggering.

"We do know him too well," I whispered back, and hid a smile behind my hand.

"You know, Odd," Ulrich said, looking back at his roommate. "We should really drag you the mall and make you stare at all the girls there, and see how many stare back."

Odd raised an eyebrow. "They'll be starin' at me the second I walk in," he drawled, and I giggled. He looked at me, and pretended to look hurt. "Oh, sure, pick on the little guy. I—what the!"

A scream suddenly tore the air, and the five of us jumped to our feet. The cafeteria broke out into yelling, and students were running helter-skelter. Then, a tiny little dark skinned girl carrying a small black box, what Jeremie later called a camera, came running in through the doors. She stopped, and pointed back the way she had come.

"The- there's a vampire o-out there!" She sobbed, and broke into tears. There was silence for a few seconds, then a tumult of noise broke out. The teachers shouted for silence, but nothing happened.

I looked at Jeremie, who had shut his laptop with a snap. "A vampire?"

"A monster from folk-lore that sucks blood from the living," Jeremie explained in an undertone. He looked at me anxiously. "Do you think it's X.A.N.A.?"

I closed my eyes. "Let's find out," I whispered, and let my mind go.

The moment I did, I saw, as Jeremie might over his screen, the towers of Lyoko. Each of them seemed normal. Except-

When a tower ever been black!

I gasped, and threw myself out of the mediation.

"It's not X.A.N.A.!" I said, grabbing Jeremie's arm. "It's Gilis! She's activated a tower! It's turned black!"

The others gapped at me.

"And how are we supposed to counter a _Gilis_ attack?" Yumi asked, eyes wide. I smiled grimly, and met her eyes squarely.

"We fight back." At these words, Jeremie came up behind me, and took my hand.

"We fight hard," he added, and squeezed my hand gently.

Despite his shocked expression, Odd let a slight smirk cross his face. "Now that's what I'm talkin' about." I raised an eyebrow.

"Are you three going to help Jeremie and I?"

"Einstein, you're gonna fight this shadow-vamp-chick too!" Odd asked skeptically, and Ulrich elbowed him.

"We all are," he told his roommate. Then he looked back up at Jeremie and I. "Besides. I wanna met whoever's been buggin' you two in your dreams for the last year."

I nodded, seeing the agreement in Odd's and Yumi's faces. "Alright then. We need to think up a plan, and fast."

101010101010101 (Jeremie)

"_That's_ Gilis? _Dang_…"

Two sets of eyes glared at the speaker, and Yumi's voice hissed: "Odd, shut up! It's not exactly the time to be seeing how good-looking someone is!"

A soft chuckle came from the shadowy figure in front of us. Gilis. My eyes narrowed. What was she laughing at? And where was Aelita? Ulrich was on the lookout back in the cafeteria, that I know. But where was Aelita?

"I'm glad I'm not so repulsive," the figure said suddenly, turning and staring right at us. The next second, the bushes and brush the three of us were hiding behind totally disappeared.

"Jeremie," Gilis purred, showing fangs. "Do you think I'm repulsive?"

I stood, keeping eye contact with the creature, but didn't answer. Gilis lifted a hand, palm up, and suddenly a flash of horrible fire ran down my spine. I yelped, and almost fell over.

"Leave him alone!" Odd bellowed suddenly, and threw a large rock at Gilis. She caught it, one handed, and smiled. The next moment, it shattered. Yumi gasped, and took a step forward.

"You think you're all that," she spat, stepping purposely on one smoking fragment of rock. "But I know you're just like X.A.N.A. Just a show off. If we can beat X.A.N.A., we can beat you."

Gilis smiled, and made a motion with her hand. At once, Yumi shrieked, and her lips began to bleed.

"Yumi!" Odd and I yelled together. The girl shook her head, covering her mouth with her hand.

"Brave little thing," Gilis said softly. "It won't take very long, you know. There's a lot of blood contained in the mouth of humans, or so my master tells me..." she smiled.

"What did you do to her?" I shouted, forgetting that I was the shortest of all them, and as skinny as ever. The next second, a force slammed into my chest, and I fell backwards.

"Jeremie! Yumi!" Odd's voice sounded slightly faint as I tried to open my eyes. "What did you do to them?"

"You're cute, for a human," Gilis commented. "Too bad I have to crush you."

The next second, I heard a scream, a single, sung note, and then silence. I saw nothing.

…hehehe..Cliff-hanger! Sorry…I couldn't help myself. Don't worry, I will update as soon as I can. Thank you for coming back and reading this! Hugs from, Lady Lucy.


	2. Part 2

Summary- death of Gilis and some mush.

Dis- The usual…do own gilis…but nutin' else…

Same time- (Aelita)

"Jeremie!"

I ran through Kadic Park at top speed, my footsteps and my frantic heart beat the only sounds I could hear. All I could think of was Jeremie. I had just heard him scream. He, Odd and Yumi had gone to head Gilis off in the heart of the trees. Ulrich was on the guard for anybody that tried to get in our way: human, or otherwise. I had been helping, until now.

A flash of yellow, black and red light, then a second scream. This one sounded like Yumi. I sped up, knowing that Yumi never screams. Shouting reached my ears, and then I heard a loud, horrible laugh, and a third, familiar voice shout. I gasped, and tried to go faster. I could just see three…no, four figures up ahead through the trees.

Then came the blasting force that almost knocked me off my feet. I heard a thud, and out of frantic defense, let out a high note, more like a scream than a song.

What happened next is a mystery to me, though I have been told what truly happened. I fell backwards, and so, my friends tell me, did Gilis. She fell, as if carried, back into a tree fifteen yards away, and then landed in a heap at its base. I stood, having only fallen on my knees, and glanced into the clearing in front of me.

Once again, I fell to my knees.

There he lay, one hand thrown across his face, his glasses broken, his face scratched, and his clothing dirty. My Jeremie. His face was pale. Bloodless.

"Jeremie!" I half-crawled forward, then placed my lips against his forehead. It was warm.

"Please, please, Jeremie…"I whispered, praying that those sapphire eyes would open. "Please wake up. Please." I blinked, and cold liquid fell onto my cheeks. "Don't leave me here alone. Don't go where I can't find you."

"How sweet… two _inrics'_ together, at last."

I spun, my power suddenly back to it's normal levels. "Don't you dare try to befoul my language with your voice," I hissed. "You are the _inric_, Gilis. The foul one. Don't you dare insult Jeremie, or my people."

Gilis smirked, and walked in a circle around Jeremie and I. I stood, protecting Jeremie with my body. "He's dead, Aelita," the creature watching me said, her voice soft. "Deleted. Gone."

"LIAR!" I shouted, trying to not hear her repeat what my own mind was saying. "He is stronger than that. He cannot be dead. He can not!"

"He's only mortal, Aelita. You're above him. You're above all of them." She gestured to the figures surrounding her, lying spread-eagled on the ground. I gasped, knowing Yumi's black hair, and Odd's trademark purple clothes.

"NO!" I wavered, but didn't leave Jeremie's side. I glared at Gilis, refusing to believe that they were dead. "You're lying. The only one that I'm above, Gilis is you."

With that, I hurled my pent-up power at the shadow-woman, screaming out one of the strongest spell-songs ever written in Lyoko. Gilis screamed, but did not fall. A small wave of power hit me, and I staggered, then shielded myself, barely hurt. _Against humans, she is strong_, I realized suddenly. _But not against me_. I turned, and saw my enemy stand slowly.

"This is the last time you'll do that to me, you Lyoko brat!" She shrieked, even as her body shook violently. I didn't answer, but simply knelt in the grass next to my Jeremie's body. I felt his hand, still warm, brush against my own as I gathered my power.

"For you, _mu boinden_," I whispered, then threw back my head, and sang. I felt my magic surround me, and heard Gilis scream. My whole body seemed to be tingling; yet I felt no pain as my life force joined my magic to kill this creature that had destroyed the only one that kept me from dying. I would give him my life, if I had to. Jeremie's face, his sweet, smiling, handsome face was in my mind as I ended the spell. As part of my mind watched Gilis's body slowly disintegrate into glowing specs that vanished into the air, the rest of me was in Jeremie's arms. Then, that too, faded out, and my eyes closed to the world around me.

101010101010

"Is she okay?"

"I dunno, I asked Jeremie what he saw, but he's still in shock. The nurse yelled at me to leave him alone. His girlfriend had just been knocked out, and so was he."

"She killed the vampire?"

"Blew it up, from what Odd said."

"_ODD_? Odd Della-Robbera was there?"

"Oh, yeah…him and Ishyama and Jeremie and Ulrich. Didn't you know?"

"God, no. I can't image Jeremie fighting…he's such a nerdy dope." "Odd's dopey-ier, though. In a nice way, I mean. He's just…"

"Weird…oh shut up!"

"What-"

"She's wakin' up, Mil, shh!"

Voices reached my ears, breaking apart the blackness that surrounded me.

"Jeremie…" I blinked, and opened my eyes.

"Good morning, Aelita," called a kind-faced woman walking into the room. She had blond hair and was dressed in while jacket.

"D-Dorothy?" I stammered, squinting. The woman nodded, and I remembered. She was the school nurse. I grabbed her hand, and swallowed hard. "Please, where is Jeremie? I-I though he was dead…"a lump formed in my throat, and I gulped as tears spilled, unbidden, down my face.

The nurse smiled, and squeezed my hand. "He isn't dead, of course not, dear!" She told me. "He's right in the next room. If you want to talk to him, maybe we could wheel him in here…after you rest some more, of course. You and he took a bad fall, didn't you?"

I frowned. "F-fall?" Then it clicked, and I nodded. "I t-think so, yes. I don't quite remember." Dorothy smiled, and patted my cheek.

"You rest now, dear." She turned to two small girls standing behind her. "Now, are you two going to be quiet enough to let poor Aelita rest?" The girls both nodded vigorously, and Dorothy left, the door shutting behind her.

"It was a vampire, not a fall!" The dark-skinned girl exclaimed at once, ignoring her red-haired friend as she glared at her. "I saw it, and so did Odd!"

"Tamia, didn't you hear the nurse?"

"I'm just making sure, Mil, don't get on my case!" Tamia retorted angrily, and the redhead stuck her tongue out at her.

"Tamia, you are right, it was a vampire," I said quickly. "But don't worry. She's gone, and there's nothing to argue over."

The two girls stopped making faces at each other, and looked at me as if in awe. "Did- did you really fight it?" Milly asked, breathless. "How?"

I smiled. "She wasn't as powerful as she acted. Let's just say…fear was her main weapon." The girls nodded.

"Sounds like somebody we know, only rudeness is her main weapon," Tamia muttered, and Milly giggled. I raised an eyebrow.

"Are you talking about Sissy?"

"You mean, Ms. Run-Shrieking-Through-The-Hallways-And-Hugging-Odd-The-Second-he-Walked-Back-Into-School," spoke a gleeful, but tired voice from the doorway. I gasped, and looked around.

In wheeled Jeremie, his glasses fixed, his eyes now glowing, one cheek still slightly bruised. I yelped, and half-dove out of bed, throwing my arms around him.

"I thought you had died," I whispered, burying my face in his chest. Jeremie wrapped his arms around me, and tilted my face up to look at him.

"Now, Princess, you know I'm stronger than that," he told me softly, and a smile tugged at one corner of his mouth. (It was around this time Milly and Tamia must have snuck out of the room, probably too disgusted to watch.) Then I realized what he had just said, and my mouth fell open.

"You heard me? You were awake the whole time?"

Jeremie shook his head slowly. "Not really. Half awake and in pain. I thought Gilis was a nightmare, and you…" he smiled, and cupped my face in his hands. "You were an Angel. Then again," he added with a smile, "You are one." I blushed.

"Jeremie-"

"Shhh…"he whispered, and kissed me gently. A shiver of hot joy went down my body, and the world seemed to fade away. Slowly, I felt Jeremie pull me up from the floor and into his lap. I gasped slightly, but didn't pull away, running my fingers through his hair. Jeremie wrapped his arms around my waist, and deepened the kiss. So warm was sweetness coming from that kiss, I could have sworn I was melting. Then Jeremie moaned, very softly, and pulled away to place little kisses on my face. I shivered again, pulling him closer.

"A-hem."

We broke apart, startled by the suddenly voice. Then my face went hot as I heard a familiar whistle.

It was Dorothy, Yumi, Ulrich, and Odd. The nurse, of course, looked vaguely angry. The others just looked gleeful.

"Well, I see neither of you wanted to get any rest," Dorothy comment dryly.

Odd grinned innocently and winked at Jeremie and I. "But, Ma'me, couldn't they rest together? It might work that way!"

"No, Odd, I don't think they'd get _any_ rest that way," the nurse said, turning to glare at him, and I felt Jeremie's own skin heat under my hands.

"But at least she's right," he muttered in my ear, and I grinned sheepishly.

"True enough," I whispered back, and snuggled closer, totally refusing to leave the position I was in. The nurse looked at the two of us, and sighed.

"Well, I think it'd be use-less to ask you to lay back down, Aelita?" With out an answer, she turned to the other three. "You three, watch your friends. I doubt they'll go to harm in your care, but don't let either of them tire out. Don't let them be alone to long either, she added, a little louder. "We don't want Jim coming in by accident and giving them detention."

Ulrich and Yumi nodded, as Odd saluted in fake army-style. The nurse rolled her eyes, and walked back to her office.

"So what was this about Sissy?" I asked Jeremie as the other three sat down on the bed. Odd groaned and hid his face in his hands.

"Not again!"

Yumi stood. "One thing, you two, before we embarrass Odd again," she said, and reached into her backpack. Out she pulled the bronze globe Gilis had always carried. She handed it to me. "You wanna do the honors? I already found out only we five can touch it with out being knocked out immediately."

I gapped at her. "What!"

Ulrich glanced at Yumi, grinning. "Herb and Nicolas dropped like stones after trying to steal it from her this morning."

"Ulrich, that thing is what Gilis used to watch us from Lyoko!" I announced, holding the globe gingerly in my hands. "It's like…like her looking glass. I'm surprised you found it. It's usually disguised as a rock, or something. Or, at least, that's what the legends used to say." I looked the globe over. It seemed to be just normal, bronze metal shaped into a reasonably light globe, about the size of what I am told is called a 'baseball'.

Yumi looked at me, slightly nervous. "What will you do with it?"

I raised an eyebrow, and raised the globe high above my head. "This," I answered, and dropped it. The thing landed with a deafening crash, and broke instantly into tiny pieces that vanished into the air.

"That's it?" Odd asked, looking disappointed. "No scream of fury from X.A.N.A., or big ball of black lightening coming to hit the spot where it landed?"

Ulrich and Jeremie both began to snigger. "Odd, you watch too many cartoons," my Jeremie muttered, and Ulrich snorted.

"Can we embarrass him now?" He wheedled jokingly at Yumi, who laughed.

"Sure, as long as every thing is alright, Aelita," she said, looking at me. I nodded.

"Of course! Besides, I want to know what Sissy did to him too," I told her, and Jeremie tickled the back of my neck gently. I smiled at him, then kissed him lightly. Pulling away, I saw that glow of love was back in his eyes again, and felt the remaining weight lift of my shoulders. Everything would be fine.

It had to be.

Werid ending, perhaps? Well if so, please forgive me. It's too early for me to be up, but I can't sleep with so many ideas in my head. Please write a review; --please be nice to me—and thank you very much for reading.


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